I Don't Do Horror

A friend  asked me to go see a horror flick at the movies last week and I declined.
She was annoyed and asked why I never go see any cool movies with her, and I said that I just don't do horror films.    Saw,  The Exorcist,  The Rite,  The Haunting,  Friday the 13th - what is it, #27 by now?   I have no interest in any of them, and I will tell you why as I did her.

I can turn on the news any day of the week & see   real,   live,  horror going on in the world &in  my own community, and its free.  Rape,  Murder,  Child Abuse & Neglect,  Animal Cruelty,   Drunk or Careless Drivers,  Beatings, The Human Slave Trade,  Houses set on Fire,  Flash Floods,   Tornadoes,  Hurricanes,   Tsunamis.   Lets do a LITTLE  comparison  here....

Movie      - vs -     News Story

Silence of the Lambs ( a classic horror/thriller)      -   The Long Island Serial Killer - body count up to 8.

SAW 1,2,3, or any chop em up movie -Watch any PETA video & tell me what we do to animals isn't far worse.   Seeing an animal skinned alive is something that will never leave your mind.

War of the Worlds - classic Sci Fi   -   Turn on  CNN or BBC & see how many REAL wars we are in.

Friday the 13th (any one of them) - Does anyone remember Son of Sam, or  Adam Walsh, or the 1000's of kids that have disappeared never to be seen alive again?  Look at the back of your milk carton people.

Outbreak  - Look at the starvation, poverty & disease running rampant in many countries around the world.

2012 or The Day After Tomorrow   -  How many tsunamis & earthquakes have we seen on the news in just the last year?  Let alone  flash flooding,  rapid fires, hurricanes, & tornadoes that have hit all over the world & the US destroying real lives and property.  Can you imagine living through Katrina? or the latest Tsunami to hit Japan?  I still remember the one that hit Thailand the day after Christmas years ago.
How does anyone really fully recover from losing everything?

So, its not that I don't like a thrill, a mystery, a little scare, but all I have to do is go on line or to the TV and see the people that are living in real horror right now - that's scary enough for me.  But the difference is that on the news, I can follow up, and possibly even do something about it.  Start a Crime Watch,  an after school care program, or even learn self defense, or just help others.

I like movies, I think of them as a great escape at times, but for $10.00 a ticket and up, I would rather be
entertained with laughter, drama, suspense and fun, for a real escape from the reality of every day horrors.
So you can catch me at a Pixar film any day, but you can have my seat at the scary movie.